Duel on Duxn Excerpt
by Warden Whitetree
Summary: Set during the Mandalorian Wars. An account of the bloody fighting by Lyra Nolan, Brigadier General and Jedi Knight for the Republic.


There was no ground, only bodies upon bodies. It wasn't possible to walk without stepping on someone's comrade. As such, I avoided moving. I stood there, in the middle of the circle I had created. Death was all around me, impossible not to feel the air weep. I grieved that day, in my own way. To feel so much death, it takes a toll. But the others weren't content with what had been taken. They wanted more, far more than they had a right to. 

As I gazed over the battle field, choked with blood, he stood there. I knew his armor was blue and white, but you wouldn't be able to tell by looking. We stared at each other. He circled me, I circled in place. I'm not sure how long we spent sizing each other up, time stood still. I remember the way his armor glistened, the water from the jungle and the blood. His suit seemed to be made of gems, rather than metal and man. Watching him, he took out a blade, crude by most standards, but still just as deadly. I pulled out my 'sabers. Lighter, faster: and still just as deadly.

He rushed, using a form I had seen a lot up to that fight. I counted easily, combining steps that the Jedi had taught me with what the Republic taught its people. Long, fluid strides against his shorter, quicker ones. Shoving him back, I stood. He knew this wouldn't be a fight. Again we circled. Our footsteps shredded the light fog that rolled in. Odd, that I would remember that. It was neither a help nor a hindrance for either of us. I knew this block of land as well as he did.

He tried again, still aggressive in his stance. I fought him back with ease. It was a dance, almost. We parried, blocked, and dodged to a beat that only we could hear. I quickly performed a sidestep, clocking him with my elbow. Due to the helmet, I just made him back off. Sionet favored that move, a trademark of sorts. I always knew to wait her out till she used it, then I knew how to take her down.

We came at each other again and again. Each till I would make him back off and try something new. Each time I would match it, stroke for stroke. We began to fight in the night, illuminated by only my lightsabers. I remember thinking his helmet was frightening. A ruby lit by gold and blue. It reminded me of tales used to frighten children. A fiend: and this one was real. Still, even into the night we came at each other. Never breaking the other's defense. Never drawing blood. I couldn't be sure when we started to tire. In the dark of night, we could sense the creatures waiting for the battle to end. Duxn was never a patient planet. I remember that much. After hours of fighting each other and ourselves, we called it a draw. We just couldn't go on.

We stood: scars on our armor were the only signs of the battle we had been fighting. None of the men below us had been touched. Neither of us was willing to kill the other if it meant treading on a friend.

"I've never seen a fighter like you." By the glow of my 'sabers, I could see the smallest nod. Amazement rippled through the Force to me.

"I've been taught to be everything and nothing." My master had seen to it that I got far more fighting training than any other sentinel. He had claimed that I was a guardian in heart, and a sentinel in body. My 'sabers were a tribute to him.

"If we should meet again, I'll challenge you to a proper fight. One where we don't have to worry about our comrades."

Before I could respond, He vanished. I didn't go after him. Something told me not to. That same voice told me not to ever fight him. He had a future waiting for him. It was a matter of time, and a matter of me giving him time. And now, things have come full circle. The fighter was Kelborn. Shocked? Yes, as am I.

We parted not as enemies, but as cautious friends. Neither of us will look for the other after this. We never have to. I'm sure that when we need to, we'll find each other.

* * *

This is a short excerpt from the story that is set during Knights of the Old Republic II. I've yet to finish it, as life has an annoying habit of cutting out writing time. I'll post more when I can. 


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